Christian McCaffrey injury: Jordan Mason has career night with star RB inactive vs. Jets

San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason made the most of his first ever NFL start. The third-year running back shined in front of a national audience on Monday night.

Mason had the busiest and most productive night of his career. The running back compiled a career-high 28 carries for a lifetime best 147 yards and a touchdown in the 49ers' 32-19 victory against the New York Jets.

Mason started off the game strong running efficiently on zone runs. He had eclipsed his single-game career-high by halftime when he entered the locker room with 74 rushing yards. His previous single-game career-high was 69 rushing yards.

The 2022 undrafted running back out of Georgia Tech was seen postgame embracing his mom before he was congratulated by teammates for his performance. He deserved the praise as he helped the 49ers start the season strong against a stout Jets defense.

"I think (Jordan Mason) did a good job coming in," 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy said. "Obviously, Christian (McCaffrey) is the best in the league at running back and what he does. I’m not taking anything away from that. But I think (Jordan Mason) did a good job of coming in and filling in his void and doing his job allowing other guys to get open and allow us to run our offense."

Mason got his first career start after star running back Christian McCaffrey was a surprising scratch. The 49ers ruled McCaffrey inactive before the team’s opener against the Jets because of calf and Achilles injuries.

McCaffrey was listed on the team’s injury report as “questionable." The running back has been dealing with a calf injury since early August. But many anticipated the 2023 NFL Offensive Player of the Year to be available for the team’s highly anticipated season debut versus Aaron Rodgers and the Jets.

McCaffrey has registered 2,205 rushing yards, 20 rushing touchdowns, 1,028 receiving yards and 11 touchdown catches in 27 regular-season games with the 49ers. The 49ers acquired McCaffrey in a 2022 blockbuster trade with the Carolina Panthers.

The 49ers will need McCaffrey healthy this year as they hope to make a return trip to the Super Bowl. But they found out in Week 1 that they have another playmaker on offense in Mason.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jordan Mason has career night with Christian McCaffrey sidelined